I rather liked Kevin Drum's assessment of the situation when he termed the current Republican Congress the Party of Nyet, noting that they were so used to filibustering absolutely everything that came down the pike that they accidentally filibustered a bill they supported, and had to scramble off autopilot to save it. But so much as historic Republican obstructionism is the impression we liberals have of the current moment, that may just be bias talking. Or, maybe not. A new report from the Campaign for America's future tabulated the number of cloture votes -- essentially, votes taken to break a filibuster -- in recent Congresses. The results are startling. The Republicans have broken the record only halfway through the term. They are on track to not only blow past the historical high, but actually double it:
It's staggering stuff. When minority Democrats sought to slow the Republican agenda by asserting filibuster power far more infrequently, Republicans convinced the media to tar them as "obstructionists" unwilling to permit "yes-or-no votes." Conversely, the Democrats, facing a much greater display of intransigence, have been deemed ineffectual by the media, and the situation has been represented as if they are inexplicably failing to pass their agenda, rather than watching the Republicans act to block it.
It's staggering stuff. When minority Democrats sought to slow the Republican agenda by asserting filibuster power far more infrequently, Republicans convinced the media to tar them as "obstructionists" unwilling to permit "yes-or-no votes." Conversely, the Democrats, facing a much greater display of intransigence, have been deemed ineffectual by the media, and the situation has been represented as if they are inexplicably failing to pass their agenda, rather than watching the Republicans act to block it. 
